OT - feeling really discouraged about service dog

Lora,
Would a security system for your home help any?  I have one for that very reason, and made sure that it covered every door and window - second floor or not, it was armed.  I can sleep at night for the most part (still have occasional anxiety about it) and it is so reassuring to know when I come home that the house is safe to enter.  My alarm is on 24/7.

Just a thought -- I do get it that logic has nothing to do with PTSD.  If only!

I actually have an ADT system, including glass break sensors above all of the ground floor windows, but I stopped paying for the monitoring a while back because of ADT's policy of calling TWO numbers first to try to contact me (or someone) and only THEN calling police (even if the primary number they have is a cell phone).  I still arm it just for the sake of the siren before I go to bed, though. I understand the problems of false alarms, but if there were an intruder in the house, they would waste a lot of valuable time trying to make sure it isn't a false alarm... and I could be dead before police ever arrive (because if I were to be attacked again, I would fight tooth and nail to keep from being raped again, and if that means that I end up dead, so be it.

Lora

I understand and it is a delay that could be very dangerous.  I think the thing that makes me feel better is that I set it on "instant" so the siren starts shrieking the second the security is breached.  At least that would give me time to arm myself if the intruder was so determined that he ignored the blaring siren.  However, that said, I live alone and have no small children who could be hurt by any form of protection I might choose to have in the house. 

I  understand the feeling of security, comfort and companionship that a dog provides - they are like members of our family.  Unfortunately I'm the proud mom of 3 cats, and they really don't do much in the line of guard duties........just look and yawn if I'm lucky they even notice.

I have considered getting a gun on a couple of occasions. Just not terribly comfortable with that, though (same here, live alone, no kids)... Not yet, anyway.  I have a 5-year-old Scottish Terrier who would bark up a storm, but would almost certainly not do any more than that.  (At least that's a step up from cats, LOL.)  I cannot imagine anyone who wouldn't think twice about trying to get past a barking, growling male Chow, though.     Before I had to put Khan down, one day a man rang the doorbell and when I answered the door (after both dogs barked), he made a movement as if he was going to pull the storm door open more than just what I had cracked it to be able to hear him, but then he saw Khan standing beside me on the side of the door where it opens, and he immediately took two steps back away from the door.  He acted very suspicious and mumbled something about having he wrong house but wouldn't tell me who or what address he was looking for, but he left.  Not sure what would have happened without Khan.  Most of the time I don't answer the door at all.  My family and close friends know that they need to call first (even if they call from the driveway!)  My house has an intercom system, but the unit at the front door needs replaced (the voice is garbled so badly it is almost unintelligible) and the main unit in the kitchen has a short in it (so it works intermittently) and I have just not had an "extra" $600 to fix it while paying for my PhD.   Lora

I don't answer the door either, if I don't know who it is or am not expecting anyone.  I sure would have been alarmed by a strange man acting like that.  Khan must have been a great comfort to you, and I'm so sorry for your loss.  That must have been so difficult.  I hope it won't be long until you have another dog to help you stay safe.
Kathy

 It is so understandable to be so discouraged.  You have been on this hunt for quite awhile.  You're so important to all of us, our wishes are that you find the "perfect" fit for you sooner than later.  With that being said, I'm sending prayers your way.  KAREN

Is there a particular KIND of dog that can be a service dog?

If you lived closer, I'd be able to help if not. I am up to my EYEBALLS in puppies. My mom's Bassett had nine puppies and they are ready to go to their forever homes but nobody seems to want them. I am stressing about it because I know mom would not want them going to a pound but my poor stepdad is doing enough just trying to adjust to life without his wife without worrying about 11 dogs (9 puppies + mom and dad). So now I've moved to finding rescues that they could go to.

It was my mother's fondest wish for her dog to have puppies and for her find them the perfect homes and somehow I feel like I am letting her down (I know that's irrational).

Anyhoo...getting OFF me and ONTO you...I'm glad you do your research so you recognize the red flags. Imagine if you did not and continued working with them. You might have been worse off than you started.

I really hope you get with a program that can provide what you need or at least the rescue people get back to you soon.

Service dogs don't have to be any particular breed.  Labs, golden retrievers, and some other breeds are frequently trained as service dogs because they've been bred over many years as working dogs and they tend to be easy to train and they enjoy doing jobs like retrieving things.  But it's more about the dog's temperment than a certain breed.  People may need a dog of a certain size, as well, depending on the tasks they need the dog to do.  For instance, if a dog needs to carry things, one of those tiny dogs you can carry in your purse won't be up to the job.

 Hang in there Kelly. Have FAITH that all will work out for the best. Maybe God is preparing the perfect doggie companion for you as we type. I know for a fact that my "Ninja" was a true blessing from God. I never could have dreamed of a better dog. So I have the same hopes and aspirations for you. 

Although I know that you must be selective with these sorts of things, but have you ever thought about taking an ad out on Craigslist or some other site requesting information about service dog availability? Maybe there's a resource that you are presently unaware of. Also, is it possibe for you to get a really well trained dog, and get it certified as a service dog? I really trust that all will work out for you. Life is hard, we all need companionship and some degree of security. At least I do. 

I've posted on a forum that's about service dogs and gotten information about programs there, and I've found some programs online, and when I've spoken with someone at one program and determined that they wouldn't be a good option for me for whatever reason, I've asked them if they could suggest another program that might be able to help, so I've been in contact with a bunch of programs.  Certainly there could be resources out there I'm not aware of but I have done a lot of looking.

There is actually no official certification for service dogs.  If someone is disabled (according to the ADA definition) and the dog is trained to perform tasks that mitigate their disability, it's a service dog.  So yeah, I can get a well trained dog and then train it to perform specific tasks that I need help with.  Or, rather, I can hire a professional trainer to help me train the dog to perform those tasks, because I don't know enough about dog training to do it myself.

The biggest issue is that many dogs don't have the proper temperment to be service dogs, even if they are really well behaved pets.  I do have a  professional trainer in mind to work with (if the program doesn't work out, and it looks like it's not gonna work out) and I actually like her a lot.  But at least theoretically, a program that deals with service dogs all the time would be better at selecting a dog with the right temperment.